On 8 November, Barcelona Port Authority won the ESPO Award 2022 in recognition of the role of maritime passenger transport in enhancing the city connectivity and bringing added value to the local community.

The ESPO Award was handed over by Magda Kopczynska, Director for Innovative and Sustainable Mobility in the European Commission’s Department for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE), during the traditional ceremony and dinner at the Bozar in Brussels, attended by more than 170 guests.

Barcelona Port Authority won the ESPO Award 2022 for its project ‘Your Port Opens Up Again’.

This project involves the deeper integration of the old port of Barcelona and the city through the completion of the reorganization of passenger traffic.

It includes transferring one ferry and two cruise terminals from the old port area to a wharf located in the commercial port exclusively dedicated to passengers and relocating a multipurpose terminal in the commercial port.

Dimitrios Theologitis, Chairman of the ESPO award jury said about the winning project: ‘One of the major current European port investment projects, it is admirable in that it faithfully follows a plan since the Olympic Games of 1992. It draws together numerous public and private actors, it invests in green technologies to minimise externalities, it responds to the wishes of its host city by giving back valuable waterfront space and solving major congestion problems.’

Santiago Garcia Milà, deputy Director General of the Port of Barcelona added: ‘We are very honoured with this award, especially since it is an award coming from ESPO. We consider winning this award as an appreciation and support for our strategy which aims at combining sustainability with taking care of the passengers that come and leave from our port.’

Out of the seven submissions received this year, the projects of Barcelona Port Authority (Spain), Tallinn Port Authority (Estonia), Ceuta Port Authority (Spain) and ADRIJO Network - Adriatic Ports Cultural Network (Croatia, Italia) had been shortlisted for this 14th  edition.

All the submissions are summarised in the ESPO Award Brochure 2022 available for download here:

https://www.espo.be/media/ESP-2976_ESPO_Award2022_Finale%20version.pdf

ESPO Conference 2023: Hosted by Bremenports

1 & 2 June 2023

The nineteenth in the series of ESPO Conferences,  that for 2023, will take place in Bremen on 1 and 2 June next and hosted by Bremenports.

The organisational teams of both ESPO and Bremenports met before summer just past and have already decided on the venues for the Conference and networking events.

It will not come as a surprise that a city with such a long maritime history and tradition, will prove to be a unique setting for organising this annual gathering and highlight of the European port industry.

The ports invite potential delegates to pencil these dates in the diary.

Bremenports video

An interesting promotional video is available here: https://www.espo.be/news/save-the-date-espo-conference-to-be-held-on-1-and-